Smidgen Podcast

While we were initially late to the party, we are now 100% on board when it comes to electric pressure cookers—specifically The Instant Pot. The electric pressure cooking trend looks like it’s here to stay. We now teach Instant Pot cooking classes at Red Stick Spice Company and find ourselves turning to this handy gadget daily.

On this episode of Smidgen, we chat with chef and author Bruce Weinstein. Bruce has authored two pressure cooking cookbooks with a third book on the way. We talk specifically about the Instant Pot brand of pressure cookers and get Bruce’s advice for cooking success and how to avoid common pitfalls. Anne gets to the bottom (literally) of her recent “barley incident” and her Instant Pot’s rude “burn” readout warning. She also admits that she did not read her Instant Pot’s user guide. (To be clear, she threw it away.) Pro tip: read your manual! 

After talking with Bruce, Anne heads to the Red Stick Spice test kitchen with store staffer Cameron where they make a big pot of Smoky Instant Pot Red Beans & Rice.    

Here's a shopping list for ya: 

Here’s a list of the links we mentioned in the podcast:

• First, there are many electric pressure cookers on the market. We use both the 6 and 8-quart Instant Pot brand cookers.
• Among Bruce’s many books, he covers pressure cooking in The Instant Pot Bible, The Great Big Pressure Cooker Book and From Freezer to Instant Pot. We turn to them all regularly. We’re also in love with Bruce’s book Sheet Cakes & Slab Pies. Yum!
• Bruce and his partner Mark host a lively cooking podcast called Cooking with Bruce & Mark. Their blog is equally as informative.
• Anne & Cameron cook up Smoky (and vegan!) Instant Pot Red Beans & Rice. They use our Smoked Extra Virign Olive Oil along with salt-free Red Bean Seasoning and Smoked Sweet Paprika for that cooked-all-day deliciousness. They also cooked up a very tasty, four-minute Instant pot of rice.

WHERE TO LISTEN TO SMIDGEN:

Listen to Smidgen on the podcast player above or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or your favorite podcast app.

We all remember our favorite teachers. After you hear Anne’s interview with Marcelle Bienvenu, you’ll understand why she’s Anne’s all-time favorite teacher. Marcelle Bienvenu’s resume is lengthy: Times Picayune food writer, cookbook writer and editor for several culinary greats including Emeril Lagasse, plus she’s penned several cookbooks of her own. Marcelle is also an instructor at John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University. Listen as Anne and Marcelle unravel the complex tapestry of Cajun Creole Cuisine.

After talking with our guests, Anne heads to the Red Stick Spice test kitchen with store staffer Sara and cook up a skillet of Corn Creole. 

Here’s a list of the links we mentioned in the podcast:

• Marcelle and Anne chatted about Emeril Lagasse’s 1996 cookbook Louisiana Real & Rustic and that it’s a great collection of Louisiana home cooking recipes.
• Check out all of Marcelle’s books on Amazon. Be sure to grab copies of Anne’s favorites: the Who’s Your Mama series of cookbooks.
• Read about Marcelle’s preservation work with her Cooking Up a Storm This one is a must for all food lovers, especially those who were fans of the Times Picayune Thursday food section.
• If you’re ready to dig into the history of Cajun cuisine, grab a copy of Stir the Pot. This book is used as a curriculum text at John Folse Culinary Institute.
• Be sure to make a reservation at Bistro Ruth, the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute run restaurant that Marcelle talked about on the podcast.
• Anne & Sara head to the test kitchen to cook up Corn Creole. This very simple recipe is anything but simple when it comes to flavor. This dish includes our lower-salt Cajun-Creole spice blend called The Stuff. Corn Creole is a staple on Anne’s Thanksgiving table, and it’s also a must at the height of summertime corn season. This dish is comfort in a cast iron.
• Considering culinary schools? Be sure to look into the program at Nicholls State University. The John Folse Culinary Institute offers a very competitive program that’s a bargain when it comes to tuition—trust us. Anne’s an alum.
• Sara, our test kitchen sidekick, is also a professional organizer. You can find her over at South Coast Organizers. 

WHERE TO LISTEN TO SMIDGEN:

Listen to Smidgen on the podcast player above or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or your favorite podcast app.

Your eyes eat first, right? Wrong. Today, our phones eat first. And for at least 6 years (an eon in social media years,) our phones have been eating Sheet Pan Suppers. Anne shows her cranky side and frustration over this “new” way of cooking—it’s called baking. While we are, in all seriousness 100% behind this cooking method, we did want to find out why the Sheet Pan Suppers “trend” caught on and keeps on keeping on. Anne covers this Phone to Fork movement with lots and lots of deliciousness along the way.

After talking with our guests, Anne heads to the Red Stick Spice test kitchen with store staffer and fellow plant eater Sara where they put a rainbow of veggies on multiple sheet pans then lose all their manners and talk with their mouths full of Sheet Pan Carrot tacos with Big Batch Restaurant Style Salsa.   

Before you listen or watch, print out our shopping list for this episode!

Here’s a list of the links we mentioned in the podcast:

• First up, be sure you have several 18X13 inch sheet pans in your cupboard. In Baton Rouge, you can stock up on sheet pans at Ducote’s Restaurant Supply. They’re also available at Sam’s Club or online.
• Sheet Pan Suppers author Molly Gilbert was a world of information. Molly and Anne talked about several recipes including Dorie Greenspan’s Sheet Pan Chicken with Apples along with Molly’s recipes for Baked Brie & Strawberries (page 9,) Crispy Mushrooms & Burrata Crostini (page 28,) Roasted Crisp Topped Eggplant with Chickpeas (page 150,) Greek Stuffed Roly-Poly Squash (page 166) and Orange Cardamom Pound Cake (page 246.) New to sheet pan suppers? Molly recommends that you start with Quick Chicken & Baby Broccoli with Spicy Peanut Sauce on page 52 of her book. Head over to Molly’s blog Dunk & Crumble for more recipes, and be sure to give her podcast And Eat It Too a listen—big, big fun!
• Anne then chats with cooking instructor Lili Courtney about how the secrets to successful sheet pan suppers. Check out Lili’s Tarragon Mustard Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs. Be sure to keep an eye on our cooking classes and grab a seat in Lili’s next Skillets & Sheet Pans class.
• Anne and social media manager Chelsey chatted about all things photo-worthy including her boutique Sosis. Be sure to check it out! We also filled our heads with more social media knowledge with local influencer Erin Bowling. Be sure to follow her on Instagram: @eatbatonrouge.
• Anne & Sara head to the test kitchen to cook up Sheet Pan Carrot Tacos. We used our Taco Tuesday Blend and Garlic Jalapeno Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Then we blitzed up a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it Restaurant Style Big Batch Salsa. Whether you’re feeding carnivores or veggie eaters, this recipe satisfies 100% of the time.
• Sara, our test kitchen sidekick, is also a professional organizer. You can find her over at South Coast Organizers. 

WHERE TO LISTEN TO SMIDGEN:

Listen to Smidgen on the podcast player above or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or your favorite podcast app.

Smidgen launched last week and we’ve been amazed with the response! Thank you to everyone who is listening, sharing, and reviewing the show. You can hear Episode 1 of Season 1 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or your favorite podcast app.

We have a little bonus for you as a thank you for all the support. Host Anne Milneck, owner of Red Stick Spice Co. and podcast producer Catherine O’Brien do a short lightning round on the topic of Scratch vs. Store Bought—some of Anne’s opinions might surprise you!

Don’t forget: all the recipes featured on Smidgen can be found at Red Stick Spice.com. The next episode of Smidgen will be out in a few days, so enjoy this bonus until then! Thanks for listening to Smidgen!

What can I do to make boneless, skinless chicken breasts taste better? It’s the number one question we hear in the store, day in, day out. It made sense to make it the topic of our very first podcast episode. Our shop stocks thousands of spices, blends, oils and balsamics on the shelves, so we are well-equipped to answer the question. But we wanted to go deeper in this episode. We wanted to find out how consumers have come to prefer this particular packaged poultry. We decided to ask Galen Iverstine or Iverstine Farms Butcher—Baton Rouge’s premier local butcher—about this very popular cut and what we can do (or not do) in order to get full flavor and bang for our buck. We love Galen’s approach to ranching and butchering. His insight broadened our perspective for buying local and what it really means for a foodway to be sustainable.

After talking with Galen, we head over to the Red Stick Spice test kitchen with store staffer Madeline to cook up a spicy Peruvian Spatchcock Chicken with Cilantro Sauce. Among other things, Anne shares her memories of her Catholic upbringing and Pagan babies, declares herself Team Cilantro and ties it all into the oh-so delicious spatchcock chicken and creamy cilantro sauce.  

Before you watch, print our shopping list for the recipes we'll be whipping up.

Here’s a list of the links we mentioned in the podcast:

• Galen and Anne talked about the books Omnivore’s Dilemma and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Both are great reads if you’re interested in changes to our foodways and the farm-to-fork movement.
• Visit Iverstine Farms online and be sure to check out their Butcher Bundles—the “meat subscription” Anne talks about and recommends for pastured raised beef, pork and chicken delivered right to your door. Visit Iverstine's on Facebook at Iverstine Family Farms & Instagram @iverstinefarms
• Anne & Madeline cooked up Peruvian Spiced Spatchcock Chicken with cool Creamy Cilantro Sauce. We used our Peruvian Chicken Blend on the chicken for smoked tomato flavor with a little heat. We cranked up the heat to roast the chicken, so we used Pointe Coupee Pecan Oil because of its high smoke point and delicious flavor. Our Cilantro Lime Extra Virgin Olive Oil went into the cilantro sauce and is Anne’s go-to for summertime grilling.
• Join us on an upcoming Farm, Food & Cooking Tour which includes a behind-the-scenes look at Iverstine Farms Butcher shop. Big fun filled with important info and delicious bites.

WHERE TO LISTEN TO SMIDGEN:

Listen to Smidgen on the podcast player above or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or your favorite podcast app.

Somewhere between a pinch and a dash is a smidgen, and when it comes to cooking, a smidgen can make all the difference. Introducing Smidgen, the podcast of Red Stick Spice Company. Host Anne Milneck is a chef, head "spice girl" at Red Stick Spice Company, and a tireless champion of home cooks everywhere. Smidgen features some of the most interesting people in the food world plus real world cooking segments recorded right from the Red Stick Spice Co. Teaching Kitchen. 

Season One of Smidgen launches June 13. Subscribe now on your favorite podcast app. 

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